Duke of Edinburgh’s Gold Award Ceremony

By Richard Roe | Posted: Tuesday October 10, 2023

On Sunday, 53 young men and women from throughout New Zealand were presented with their Duke of Edinburgh Gold Award at a ceremony hosted by Otago Boys’ High School.

Three of those being presented were our very own Ben Burrow, Boudewijn Keenan, and Moss Pelvin (all attended OBHS 2017 – 2021).

Peter Hillary addressed the audience, and included a humorous recollection of a time when he was climbing with his father, Sir Ed Hillary, on the lower slopes of Mt Everest. A group of other climbers came past and one of them pointed directly at Sir Ed and told him that was not the way a true mountaineer would hold his ice-axe. Dunedin mayor, Jules Radich, was also in attendance, but unfortunately the Governor General, Dame Cindy Kiro, was unable to attend due to other commitments.

Before the ceremony, Oliver MacKenzie (Year 11) entertained the guests on the piano, and made a fine job of providing the music for the singing of the National Anthem. A huge thank-you must also go to my team of current Duke of Edinburgh’s Award participants who helped out with serving the morning tea to over 200 people.